While medicine, law, and other professions have made
considerable progress, race and gender equity remains a major
concern in architecture and planning, and among the organizations
that oversee education and practice.

The School of Architecture and Planning was created half a
century ago as a direct challenge to orthodox design education. We
live those original principles today, committed to architecture and
planning as interdisciplinary problem-solving enterprises, rooted
in social engagement, nourished by research-in-practice, animated
by making and doing, and committed to meeting the needs of clients,
communities, and society in an increasingly complex urban
world.

The School of Architecture and Planning and the University at
Buffalo offer a range of financial support opportunities for
students. Resources range from financial aid to scholarships to
student employment.

The School of Architecture and Planning, in partnership with the
university, our alumni, our faculty and staff, and our
philanthropic supporters, provides support to our undergraduate and
graduate students. In addition to tuition scholarships, stipends
for travel and supplies, and support for study abroad, our
students, like our faculty, are actively engaged in teaching,
research, and service—and are rewarded for their hard
work.

The Dean’s Council is a leadership group of friends of the
School of Architecture and Planning dedicated to raising
the global profile of the school and advancing its academic
programs and research enterprise. Members of the Dean’s
Council include distinguished alumni and leading
professionals, from firm executives to educators. As champions of
the School of Architecture and Planning, members leverage their
diverse expertise and leadership positions to forge new connections
and build the school's network of support.

Stay connected! Update your profile below and let us know where
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enhance the reputation of the school on an international
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The School of Architecture and Planning, in partnership with
local chapters of the American Institute of Architects and the
American Planning Association, has developed a Professional Mentor
Program for alumni and friends to share their experiences and
advice with current students.

Search job and internship opportunities in architecture and
planning. The following openings require varying levels of
education and experience and have been posted by employers on UB
Career Services' BullsEye system.

How a Buffalo transplant became a Buffalo ambassador

By Julie Wesolowski

Until three years ago Juweria Dahir (BA ’15) knew no one
in Buffalo other than her husband and his family. Now she is more
deeply immersed in the workings of this city, and in the lives and
fortunes of its people, than most native-born residents.

Professionally she works for the mayor as external affairs
manager in the city’s Division of Citizen Services, through
which she leads community service programs such as AmeriCorps
VISTA, Citizen
Participation Academy and Buffalo’s Urban Fellows
Internship Program. Outside of work, she directs H.E.A.L.Women
Empowerment of Buffalo, a local program within H.E.A.L.
International, a nonprofit organization that teaches life skills to
socially and economically disadvantaged women, many of whom are
refugees. All that she does, whether professionally or in a
volunteer capacity, reflects a personal mission to help refugees,
women and populations in need.

A former refugee herself, the 25-year-old Dahir is uniquely
understanding of their plight. “You become a refugee because
something has gone terribly wrong, where your best option is to
abandon your home, your job, your loved ones and sometimes your
identity,” she says. Born in Somalia amid a civil war, she
was less than a year old when she fled Mogadishu with her mother
and siblings. They first relocated to Switzerland and seven years
later settled in Birmingham, England.

She ended up in Buffalo as a result of love—her
now-husband grew up in the city and is currently pursuing his PhD
at UB in biochemistry. Having already begun college in England when
they met, she also transferred to UB; she graduated magna cum laude
with a BA in sociology in 2015 and is now working on her
master’s in urban and regional planning.

As an undergrad at UB, Dahir received a WNY
Prosperity Fellowship, which awards civic-minded students
committed to Western New York with funding and networking
opportunities. It was through the fellowship that she landed an
internship with Buffalo’s Urban Fellows; after graduation,
she went to work for the mayor part time, eventually working her
way up to her current high-profile position.

Dahir finds inspiration in the example of her mother, who would
frequently ask her, “How will you take that raw talent of
yours and turn it into something real and tangible?” You
could argue she has already done that, but she has really only just
begun. After receiving her master’s, she hopes to lead urban
renewal efforts to keep communities intact within Buffalo’s
most vulnerable populations.

In the meantime, she is diligently working to make the city a
better place to live in for all of its residents. “Everybody
has their own calling and if we each embrace it, the world might
just be a better place,” she says. “I think we all have
a responsibility to help out on this planet.”

Luckily for Dahir, helping people in need, no matter who they
are or where she is, comes naturally. “I wake up most days
where all I want to do is what I get to do,” she says.